2.14 billion is the number of people who shop online.
We hope this rank calms your anxiety if you still wonder if starting an eCommerce furniture store is profitable.
There is no doubt that there is a huge demand and opportunity for online furniture sellers, which proves that the furniture industry is one of the most lucrative and competitive sectors in the e-commerce market.
But how to go about building an online furniture business from scratch?
Now that we have cleared all the apprehensions and seen the business’s benefits, let’s determine how to start a successful eCommerce store in the furniture business.
Clear your "Why"
Before starting the business, before choosing an online furniture-selling platform, answer why you want to start this business. Is it for side business, fun, and learning, or because you want to start something of your own? If you have a solid reason to start the company, it will be your constant North Star guiding and motivating you throughout the process.
Do you have an answer? Stick to it!
Choose a Platform
You may always design a furniture eCommerce website from scratch with coding. But it takes a lot of time, energy, and investment. In most cases, the better option is to go with a platform with a ready-made store template you can use or purchase based on your needs.
Many excellent platforms are available in the market, such as Shopware, Shopify, WooCommerce, Magento, BigCommerce, and more. Each forum has advantages and disadvantages, depending on your needs, budget, and preferences.
Here are some key considerations to take in mind while choosing the platform:
- Ease of use: Determine how easy it is to set up and customize your online store without requiring much technical skills or coding.
- Functionality: See what the features and options that the platform offers are, such as product catalog, shopping cart, design templates, checkout, payment, shipping, taxes, SEO, etc.
- Scalability: How well can the platform handle your growth and expansion regarding traffic, sales, products, etc.? This is one of the most prominent things to consider based on the size of your business.
- Security: Check how secure the platform is in protecting your data and your customer’s information from hackers and fraudsters.
- Support: The reliability of a platform plays a significant impact in providing technical assistance, customer service, and updates.
You can compare different platforms based on these factors and their budget plans and choose the one that suits your online furniture business the best.
Choose Your Niche
There is a lot of competition in the eCommerce furniture stores. So, it is essential to find your niche and stick to it. This step helps you stand out, attract and retain loyal customers, and increase profitability by focusing on a smaller, more profitable market segment.
For your eCommerce furniture store, you can choose your niche by specializing in a particular type or category of furniture, like sofas, beds, tables, etc. You can also focus on a specific style or furniture theme, such as modern, minimalistic, vintage, rustic, etc. Focusing on a target audience also becomes helpful in providing a particular type of furniture. You can also align your online furniture business with a specific cause or mission, such as sustainability, social responsibility, charity, budget-friendliness, etc.
Choose your niche based on your passion, expertise, and market research. This will create a unique value proposition for your e-commerce furniture store.
Create a Brand
Your brand name, color scheme, and overall visual presentation will be part of the ”first impression”. This is why you ensure your website and social media pages have a cohesive look and feel that reflects the style of your furniture. A visually appealing brand does two things: it attracts customers and builds trust and recognition.
Some straight truths and suggestions:
- Choose a name that is short and catchy.
- Build a website that is aesthetic as well as functional. If it looks good but takes minutes to load, it won’t work.
- Refrain from keeping fancy, overly cursive, or exaggerated fonts that people cannot read. Some of the most accessible fonts that you can use for descriptions are Helvetica, Georgia, Merriweather, Open Sans, Lato, Futura, and everyone’s favorite, Times New Roman.
- Pop-ups are good, but if the shopper closes one and another pops up, the person will likely exit the website with frustration.
- It is easy to go off-brand. So incorporate your passion, values, and mission everywhere!
Include High-Resolution Images
Images are the only way shoppers can determine whether they like the style and color of the product, and if the photos are blurry and cropped out of place, the product won’t be bought. So, display your products in high-quality and realistic images that capture the details, colors, and texture of your furniture items.
One of the most attractive things you can do is accessorize the items to tell a story through your photos. Put soft pillows and a throw blanket on the couch to create a feeling of warmth that people want in their homes. Put a stack of books or electronic equipment on a table to give a sense that motivates people to study or work.
Also, keep the zoom feature and 360-degree rotation feature so that shoppers can precisely check everything before buying. (This also helps minimize returns.)
Introduce Augmented Reality
We noticed that more and more people find it convenient to shop for furniture online. But, even with that convenience, many still want to try out a table before purchasing. This is where AR technology comes into play. With this tech, you can offer a try-before-you-buy approach by allowing your customers to see virtually how your furniture items would look and feel in their environment. This makes them more likely to buy the furniture, boosting sales. The best example is on the website of one of the most famous furniture brands, Ikea.
Provide Comprehensive Payment Options
Most platforms provide you with features and opinions to set up and manage your payment options, such as payment settings, payment providers, payment methods, etc. You can use these features to choose and configure end-to-end encryption multiple payment options that align with your audience’s diverse needs. Also, use secure and reliable payment gateways to process and accept your customers’ payments using different methods. The “Buy now, pay later” approach has also gained an appreciation that allows shoppers to pay on monthly EMIs. Displaying trust badges and logos, such as SSL certificates and PCI compliance, can significantly build trust and credibility for your furniture eCommerce store.
SEO and Marketing
Creating a website and building an eCommerce store does not mean the job is done. You have to promote your online furniture-selling platform continuously using SEO and different marketing schemes. SEO can drive more traffic and sales to your online furniture store. You can perform furniture marketing with the help of SEO for your store by keyword research, including high-quality content and well-written product descriptions, meta texts (including using the primary keyword in Alt Text, meta description, and permalink), backlinks, internal links, and maintaining the optimal page speed.
While mouth-to-mouth marketing has a trusted result, leveraging digital marketing techniques is necessary. Use social media and the power of content creation, and watch your eCommerce furniture business travel globally.
Make it Responsive
Making the furniture eCommerce website responsive is a fundamental but crucial step. It is estimated that 56% of people shop online through mobile devices, and this is a number that is increasing year by year. A responsive design increases your traffic by providing your audience with a faster, easier, and more personalized shopping experience. Also, you can incorporate furniture marketing strategies with push notifications, loyalty programs, discounts, etc., to make it mobile-friendly in the best ways.
Customer Service
Imagine your shop from a plain, straightforward website, and that’s the end. On the other hand, you opt for a lively, user-friendly website that greets you warmly and offers tempting incentives like free shipping on your first purchase, remembers your details for convenience, and sends you timely discount notifications.
Which experience would you prefer?
This highlights that while there may be other websites or platforms selling similar products and services, none can replicate the quality experience you provide. Make customers your priority. Introduce 24/7 chatbots to answer their questions and assist them throughout purchasing. Offer multiple channels for communication, including email, live chat, or phone support, to provide personalized responses to inquiries. Sometimes, people do not buy things because the return policy is complex. So, implement a hassle-free returns and exchange policy. This will surely increase your customer loyalty. The more quality experience you provide your customers, the more your business will grow.
Ready to launch your furniture store?
We're here to help you succeed!
What are the challenges that you may face?
Unexpected challenges can knock on your door without any warning, but here are the most common challenges you might face while starting your eCommerce furniture store.
- Facing high competition, as there are many online furniture businesses and sellers in the market, both big and small.
- Ensuring consistent quality across all furniture pieces sourced from different suppliers.
- Building trust with customers in the beginning.
- Digital furniture marketing and promoting your business in the initial stage.
- External factors like supplier shortages or transportation delays can disrupt the supply chain.
- Staying updated with evolving trends and consumer preferences.
Now you know all the steps to start a successful online furniture business and an eCommerce store. It will be challenging, but the rewards will double if you stay determined and do not give up.
We wish you all the very best! If you have any questions or queries, please share them with us in the comments!
Shlok Parikh
Shlok is working as Operations Manager and leading the consulting team at iCreative technologies, we're a digital eCommerce agency mainly serving B2B clients across the globe. With experiences in more then 15 eCommerce framework segments, Shlok offers consulting and expert advices to different business problems and getting custom as well as process oriented solutions for his client. Given more then 100 solutions to our customers and made them happy with the best possible consulting services!
